linux-kernel - Re: [Bug #11342] Linux 2.6.27-rc3: kernel BUG at mm/vmalloc.c

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Date:	Fri, 26 Sep 2008 15:25:29 +1000
From:	Rusty Russell <rusty@...tcorp.com.au>
To:	Linus Torvalds <torvalds@...ux-foundation.org>
Cc:	Yinghai Lu <yhlu.kernel@...il.com>, Ingo Molnar <mingo@...e.hu>,
	David Miller <davem@...emloft.net>, Alan.Brunelle@...com,
	travis@....com, tglx@...utronix.de, rjw@...k.pl,
	Linux Kernel Mailing List <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>,
	kernel-testers@...r.kernel.org,
	Andrew Morton <akpm@...ux-foundation.org>,
	arjan@...ux.intel.com, Jack Steiner <steiner@....com>
Subject: Re: [Bug #11342] Linux 2.6.27-rc3: kernel BUG at mm/vmalloc.c - bisected

On Friday 26 September 2008 01:42:13 Linus Torvalds wrote:
> On Thu, 25 Sep 2008, Rusty Russell wrote:
> >     This turns out to be awful in practice, mainly due to const. 
> > Consider:
> >
> > 	#ifdef CONFIG_CPUMASK_OFFSTACK
> > 	typedef unsigned long *cpumask_t;
> > 	#else
> > 	typedef unsigned long cpumask_t[1];
> > 	#endif
> >
> > 	cpumask_t returns_cpumask(void);
>
> No. That's already broken. You cannot return a cpumask_t, regardless of
> interface. We must not do it regardless of how we pass those things
> around, since it generates _yet_ another temporary on the stack for the
> return slot for any kind of structure.

No, for large NR_CPUS, cpumask_t is a pointer as shown.  And we have numerous 
basic functions which return a cpumask_t.  Yes, this is part of the problem.

> What _is_ relevant is how we allocate them when we need temporary CPU
> masks. And _that_ is where my suggestion comes in. For small NR_CPUS, we
> really do want to allocate them on the stack, because calling kmalloc for
> a 4- or 8-byte allocation is just _stupid_.

Right, but cpumask_t is used for far more than stack decls, thus the problems.

I can make a separate "cpumask_stack_t" and use your method tho.  I think that 
might even reduce churn and allow us to do this in parts.

> which has to be converted some way. And I think it needs to be converted
> in a way that does *not* force us to call kmalloc() for idiotically small
> values.

Yeah, got that.  But your suggestion to change cpumask_t turned out horribly 
ugly.

Cheers,
Rusty.
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